The heavy iron door groaned shut behind me, its echo chasing me up the narrow stone stairwell like a warning bell. I pressed my back to the damp wall for a second, chest heaving, heart thrashing inside my ribs as if it wanted to claw its way out. My hands were still shaking from the weight of what I had just promised.
I'll get you out. I swear I'll get you out.
The girl's voice lingered in my ears, soft and raw, broken by fear and exhaustion. She had clutched my wrist with her bloody fingers, eyes wide like a trapped bird, and I had seen my own reflection in her terror. That was what had made me say it. The words had tumbled out of me before I could stop them, reckless and dangerous. But now the weight of them sat heavy on my shoulders.
